Quick question. I have some brightly polished stainless steel guide rods that go to some Classic P series pistols. They work great, but I'd prefer to have them in black. What is the cost/difficulty level of having them anodized black?

Thanks for the info!

I don't think (?) you can anodize stainless steel like you can with aluminum. You could have them coated. CCR could do it but you'd likely be without them for several weeks as busy as they seem to be.

Since the tip is all you see unless the slide is locked back, you could easily/cheaply paint the ends with a BIRCHWOOD CASEY paint stick.

In fairness, my knowledge of metals and the coloring or staining thereof is, frankly, nil.

I assumed that anodizing of stainless was possible due to seeing it on this site:

http://www.rhynotek.com/Stainl...SAS-p/601120capb.htm

I have some of their guide rods and they have proven to be very durable over the years and have worked great. I just assumed that could be done since they were doing it.

So, if not anodizing, what would be the best way (budget consciously, of course) of blackening the bright stainless ones, I wonder..

Agree, you do not blacken stainless steel by anodizing, the advertisement is incorrect.
But however they do it, it might be cheaper to buy theirs than to blacken yours.

The main methods of blackening stainless steel are metallurgical processes like DLC/Ionbond and nitride/Melonite. Robar does a process they call chromium sulfide but I do not think it is any more durable than bluing.
None are going to be very budget minded for a few individual parts.

Well, already have the silver, hate to waste them, rather just blacken them if possible. I'll check with Robar....

My philosophy is that I can't see the guide rod through the sights, so its color doesn't matter.

There are some black oxide kits out there that say they will work on stainless steel. Never tried one so not sure how it will work:

https://www.epi.com/black-oxid...m/insta-blak-ss-370/

Caswell has some DIY kits too, but you would need to call them to see what they recommend for stainless steel as I believe all their standard kits are intended to work with mild steel:

https://www.caswellplating.com...de-kit-1-25-gal.html

Acid blackens stainless steel. Try putting them in white vinegar (acidic) for a while and watching them.

These guys did a black oxide treatment on my AK receiver for like $25.

http://www.midniteblack.com

They happen to be local for me, but maybe there's someone similar near you. Or see if you could send a padded SASE with it for them to return to you.

I have used the Caswell system. Was very impressed how well it worked on a stainless barrel.

I really appreciate the answers, guys. I'll pick a system and get back to you, let you know how it worked!
Thanks